Guarded: Old Version
by whenthewallscomecrashingdown
Summary: Rose Weasley has a big problem: a man is out for her blood and he'll do anything to get it. And it seems like the only person that can help her is Scorpius Malfoy, her childhood nemesis/snog partner and auror extraordinaire. OLD VERSION
1. Chapter 1

"Are you fucking kidding me?"

The way my dad sighs loudly and runs a hand through his hair for the thousandth time since the beginning of this conversation assures me that he is, indeed, not kidding me.

"I know, Rosie. I messed up, but really, this is for the best." He pleads with me.

"You messed up? You messed up? Damn fucking right you messed up! In fact, I'd say you messed up about a thousand times over! What the fuck were you thinking?" I scream at him.

My dad is a very good Auror, no one can deny that. He's been in the Auror office with my Uncle Harry for decades and together they have brought the crime rate down considerably since they took over the office.

However, sometimes my father can be a bit…stupid, dare I say it, for lack of a better word. I love him dearly, I do, I just become quite irritated when he manages to endanger my life, as any other daughter would react, I'm sure.

"I didn't think he would escape!" My dad exclaims in his defense.

"That's your excuse?" I yell at him. "You didn't think he would escape? You taunted and baited a criminal simply because you could and you thought it was okay because you figured he wouldn't escape?"

I'm seething.

My dad looks at me sheepishly. "Merlin! I get it Rose! I made a mistake and you have every right to punish me for it!" He says, exasperated. "But I'm not giving you a choice on the matter, it's for your own safety!"

My dad pissed of a common criminal. This may not have been a big deal if said common criminal hadn't escaped from his community service building and is now consequently at large. Oh, yeah, and apparently said common criminal is also coming after me.

Why me, do you ask? Well maybe not just me in particular (apparently he had threatened my entire family) but seeing as my brother Hugo is still at Hogwarts finish up his final year and my mum can handle herself, I seem to be the easiest target.

Fan-fucking-tastic.

Dad just _had_ to insult Mingan "The Grey Wolf" Fuenning. Then Fuenning threatened to hurt Dad's family and now here I am, sitting in my office as my dad reluctantly explains to me why I'm at a major risk.

Dad won't tell me exactly what he said to make Fuenning so angry, but obviously, by the looks of it, it was enough for him to threaten my life.

And now, the illusion of my once sort-of-peaceful life is shattered. Great, he's now lecturing me on self defense.

This is all his fault! I glare at my dad, wishing that for once he had been able to meet his stupid mouth shut.

"…And Muggles have this silly thing called…salt spray? Yeah, I think that's what they call it, and I think you should carry it around, too, just in case you can't reach your wand in time or something."

I think he means pepper spray. And when in the hell would there ever be an instance in which I wouln't be able to use my wand but would be able to get my hands on a bottle of pepper spray? I roll my eyes at my father, still trying to console myself.

I know that he loves me.

Oh fuck this isn't working; my father is such an idiot!

"…But of course your bodyguard will be well equipped to handle any type of emergency situation that could present itself…" my dad continues.

Wait a fucking minute! Hold up! My bodyguard? No one ever mentioned anything to me about a bodyguard before!

"Bodyguard?" I screech at him.

This day just keeps getting better and better.

My dad chuckles nervously. "Heh. Yeah, um, sweetheart, you're a very good witch and I know you got an O in DADA but Fuenning is very dangerous and I just can't let you be unguarded with a criminal like him on the loose looking for you."

Perfect. Absolutely fucking perfect. I'm going to spend the rest of my life being guarded until this crazed lunatic is captured for good.

But there is still one question I want answered.

"And who exactly is going to be my bodyguard?" I question my dad threateningly.

I know this was exactly the wrong question to ask when my dad squirms uncomfortably, not looking me in the eye.

"Best Auror-in-training in his year. He is well equipped and educated and he will be able to guard you until Fuenning is captured." He fires off facts at me.

But he still hasn't answered my question.

"Who. Is. It?"

"He'll be by here at the end of your work day, 17:00, to pick you up. Don't worry Rosie! He'll protect you! Oh! And he'll need to stay in your guest room…thank Merlin you have one! I really have to go now…Harry needs my help with some…filing…" he trails off meekly.

"WHO IS IT?" I scream at him.

"ScorpiusMalfoy. Bye sweetheart! Love you!"

And then my dad, Ron Weasley, world renowned Auror known across the planet for his braveness practically sprints out of my office.

Fucking hell.


	2. Chapter 2

"Weasley! Why is it that I currently do not have an intern?" Carlos Masen screams at me, throwing the door open to my office.

There goes my peaceful morning.

Carlos is very good at what he does (Communications for the Department International of Magic Cooperation). And he's also_ very_ attractive. Blond hair, green eyes, toned abs, the whole package. He just happens to know that.

"Probably because you fired the last one." I quip, pretending to look at the papers scattered around my desk.

"That's because that idiot had no idea what he was doing! Why do you give me all the idiot men who don't know what they're doing? I told you that I prefer girl interns!"

Sigh. Why must some people be so difficult?

"Well, the last girl intern you had filed a sexual harassment complaint and quit, so Nott told me to stick the males with you."

"Well that's…that's…." Carlos splutters his face flushing as he tries to figure out just what his predicament is.

"Completely justified, Masen." My boss, Theodore Nott, joins the conversation. Masen's obnoxious screams probably drew him over here.

Nott is a very fair boss, for which I'm very grateful. I know that fair bosses are really hard to come by, but Nott seems to have a natural born kind of justice sense. No one ever even dares to cross him, not because we're scared of him but because we respect him and his opinions.

"But…sir!" Carlos says.

"No buts, Masen. We'll get you a new intern in due time. For now you'll have to fetch your own tea." Nott says in final tone.

"Yes, sir." Carlos ducks his head, glaring at me for only Merlin knows why as he exits my office.

Finally.

"Oh and Wealsey?" Nott says, catching my attention again.

"Good job on the proposal for the International Peace Talks. I daresay it will catch the attention of some countries!" He smiles kindly at me.

"Thank you sir!" I practically beam at him.

I worked really hard on that proposal. It's about time I get some appreciation for my hard work!

"Oh and your…_friend_…is here. He'll be up in a few minutes. We'll have to squeeze a desk in here for him for convenience reasons." He looks at me meaningfully.

My friend? Oh, right. Malfoy. He's coming today. And he's not my friend.

"Of course, sir." I say internally grimacing at the thought of squeezing another desk into this tiny room I call an office.

"We'll make it a small desk, Weasley." Nott says, smiling at me again.

Oh thank Merlin!

"Thank you sir!"

"Also, there's an interdepartmental meeting on Thursday and I would like you to attend. Joana will be in Puerto Rico so you will have to go in her place."

YAY! Joana is the undersecretary to Nott and going in her place is a HUGE deal. This is unbelievable! My hard work must be finally paying off!

"Right, sir, of course," I nod professionally, keeping my emotions at bay.

"Your _friend_ will be up in a few moments. I would prefer that you do not reveal his true profession. Just in case some people become…excited…over the prospect and feel unsafe at the office."

I nod my head and Nott leaves my office.

I am not looking forward to seeing Malfoy again. Why must my father have been so stupid? Why couldn't he just capture the criminal and not say anything like a professional?

"Well, well, undersecretary to the undersecretary of the Head of the Department of International Magic Cooperation, not bad Weasley." The snide, familiar voice of none other than Scorpius Malfoy grates on my ears.

I look over at the door to my office and see his familiar figure leaning against the door jamb, looking relaxed but aware of everything that is going on around him at the same time.

I roll my eyes in response. "And apparently you are the best Auror-in-training in your year, congratulations, Malfoy." I say dryly.

He smirks at me, his grey-blue eyes twinkling at me as he plops down in the chair in front of my desk. He lifts his feet up and places them on top of my desk, his arms thrown behind his head in a posture more fit for sitting on a couch.

I frown at him, but decide against saying anything. I learned from seven years at school with Malfoy to just avoid him. Originally, during our first few years, we fought magnificently and publicly for the whole school to see, but soon I realized that my life was about a thousand times easier if I just ignored him. That however did not stop the occasional fight or drunken snog during our later years at school…

I haven't seen Malfoy since the last day of seventh year, which is quite an amazing feat, really. He and Al are good friends, they even share an apartment, and yet I've managed to avoid him. My Uncle Harry raves about him; apparently he really has a knack for auroring, or whatever they call it.

"So, Weasley, I assume your father already briefed you on the case and why I'm here." Malfoy says superiorly.

"If you call telling me that he pissed of a criminal, that I'd need a bodyguard, and then running out of the room when he told me it was you briefing, then yes, he briefed me."

Malfoy chuckles at me. "Was your reaction that bad?"

I roll my eyes. "My father put my life in danger because he said something stupid! What do you think?" I yell at him.

The bastard laughs again. "It's really quite amusing from this side of the problem, you know."

I sigh and hit my head on my desk repeatedly.

"But if you do that, you make my job harder." Malfoy says, putting his hand between my head and the desk. "I'm supposed to keep you safe," he says condescendingly.

I huff indignantly. "What did my father even say? Who is this criminal anyway? What was he accused of? And how did he get away?"

Malfoy frowns at me. "Didn't your dad tell you anything?"

I shrug my shoulders.

Malfoy sighs, dropping his feet from the top of my desk and settling into a comfortable position in the chair, clasping his hands together.

"Mingan "The Gray Wolf" Fuenning is a semi-dangerous criminal." Malfoy adapts his 'professional work voice'. "He hasn't killed anyone…yet. His choice of crime seems to be the basic kidnap and rape, which is why your father is so concerned about your safety. He's concerned about your mum too, but you are his top priority because your mum has convinced him that she can handle herself. Anyway, your father was a bit…cocky…during Fuenning's apprehension and said a few things that probably weren't the wisest things to say to a criminal that could possibly see the daylight again.

"Fuenning escaped during his community service hours while cleaning the elderly witches and wizards' community center game room. Now he's on the run and the top Aurors are working hard to recapture him due to his imminent threat on the community."

"I was assigned to you," he continues, "because of my status in the Auror Academy. Usually during this point in my education I would be doing work on my own anyway and this opportunity sounded…intriguing," he smiles meaningfully at me, "so I took it up. However, I'm almost completely educated and will finish school within the next two months anyway."

I raise my eyebrows at him in disbelief.

He smirks at me, "Your father wanted me to say that in case you became difficult or refused to do something I said during a moment of crisis because I'm not an 'official auror'".

Huh. Well. Now I only have to worry about not getting raped or kidnapped until Fuenning is captured fantastic just another thing to add to my 'To Do' list.

I look down at the parchment on my desk.

_To Do:_

_Write up the proposition for the new Universal Dialogue between Witches and Wizards conference _

_Write up Wes and make date for sometime this week_

_Assign new intern to Masen because he fired the other one_

_Make sure that we have butterballs for the Ecuadorian Prime Minister who is coming into town on Thursday_

I sigh and add another bullet point to my ever-growing list.

_Try not to get killed/kidnapped/raped_

Malfoy chuckles at my newest addition to the list.

"So you're staying in my guest room?" I question him.

He nods affirmatively. "Your father wanted twenty four hour protection."

Merlin.

"Wait, so you're going to be with me twenty four/seven?" I ask in disbelief.

"No," he shakes his head. "I get Sundays and Tuesdays off actually. Al has offered to take over my job on Sundays. And on Tuesdays there will be some kind of constant rotation of aurors."

Whew. So if Scorpius isn't with me, someone else will be. Just fantastic. And Wes and I were just going to…great. I really don't want to do anything with an audience.

Malfoy props his feet up on my desk again.

"So, Weasley, what are we doing tonight?"

"_I _am going on a date. _You_ can do whatever the hell you want."

He lifts his lips up into his signature smirk. "_Whatever_ I want or _whomever_ I want?"

I flush immediately at his tone as his eyes sweep over my body openly. Did he not just hear me say that I'm going on a _date_? Will my dad still be as happy with my twenty four hour protection if said protection is going to be sexually harassing me all the time?

"Both, Malfoy. But I prefer that you do the _whomever_ on your day off."

He chuckles and is about to reply when the door to my office is thrown open again.

"Weasley, your boyfriend's stupid arse owl missed your desk again." Carlos says bitterly as he throws a bouquet of flowers on my desk.

The flowers are beautiful: orange and pink daisies, one of my favorite flowers. I lift them to my nose and inhale the beautiful smell. Sighing lightly as I see a note from Wes.

**Hello Love,**

**Happy three month anniversary!**

**I'll pick you up at your flat tonight at 7. Be ready and wear something the nice.**

**Love, Me**

I giggle and smell the flowers again.

"So where are we eating tonight?" Malfoy's annoying voice barges in on my thoughts.

I roll my eyes.

"Wear something nice. Apparently the three of us will be having a grand old time."

Malfoy smirks at me again. "Can't wait."

This is going to be disastrous.


	3. Chapter 3

"Why do I get the smaller desk?" Malfoy complains.

"Maybe because I actually work here?" I quip, looking over some files.

"Still. I'm a pretend employee. I demand a better desk!"

I roll my eyes at him. "You can't demand a better anything. You're a _pretend_ employee."

"I bet Nott would give me a bigger desk." He smirks at me.

"Actually Nott agreed with me on the size of your desk." I counter. "Now be quiet so I can and do your pretend job so I can actually get something done."

Silence from Malfoy's corner.

Finally.

He's been bugging me all day with his incessant noise. I might just have to put him up to something useful…filing would be an easy job for him. He couldn't mess that up unless he did it on purpose.

I haven't been able to concentrate all day, no thanks to Malfoy. And I have a date with Wes tonight and I just can't see how it's going to go well with Malfoy there. I might just be able to ditch him…

The second the clock in my room chimes six o'clock, I'm out of my seat, throwing on my cloak and ripping my hair out of its ponytail.

"Whoa there Rose, in a hurry?" Malfoy asks sarcastically, already at my heels.

I roll my eyes, "Hurry up!" I command him and then motion for him to follow along behind me. We rush to the lift and I tap my foot impatiently as it goes down the five floors. I rush out of the lift, walking so quickly that it was almost a jog so that I could get to the fires first.

"Weasley!" Malfoy yells after me, and I turn back to look back at him along with at least twenty other people in the crowd. I see him roll his eyes. "Rose!" He calls; clarifying to all of my relatives that it was not they he was calling.

We reach the Fountain of Magical Brethren I push Malfoy towards the right half of the fires.

"Meet you outside of the toilets!" I yell at him.

Our separation is necessary at this point because we have to end up in the Gentlemen and Ladies' restrooms, respectively. I revel in the (relatively) silent lines. There's no Malfoy to bother me, if just for a few moments, and I realize that this will quickly become a favourite part of my day.

When I step out of the toilet and bathroom, I see Malfoy there waiting for me.

"Well, I'm sure you know where my flat is! Meet you there!" I say hurriedly, trying to get a few more moments to myself.

Before he can say anything in reply I spin and land with a thump in the living room of my flat. Moments later I hear a crack and seeing him standing beside me, seething. His mouth is set in a frown and his arms are crossed and he's glaring at me.

"Guest room is on your left. I'm going to get ready!" I call, ready to head off to the bathroom. I only have so much time to prepare for my date.

"Weasley! Don't. Do. That. Again." He grabs my elbow and stares at me menacingly, enunciating every word like he's talking to a child.

"What?" I question, my eyes flickering to my clock on the wall behind him.

_30 minutes._ Merlin, it was a pain in the arse to get home from work.

"This isn't a joke, Rose." Malfoy says sternly, staring into my eyes. "There is a threat on your life and I'm here to protect you. What if someone had been hiding in your flat, waiting for you to come home so they could attack you? _Homenum revelio!"_

I glance around my apartment. Nothing happens.

"There Malfoy, no one here trying to murder me. Like anyone could get passed all of the protective charms my father put up anyway…" I say rolling my eyes and heading back to my room.

"Rose! Wait."

I turn around and see Scorpius standing there defiantly, looking like he's ready to push someone into a wall, hard. That someone is probably me.

"Just hear me out, Rose." He says, softer this time and I nod for him to continue. "This is serious." He says gravely. "I hope it doesn't take something drastic for you to realize that. I know that you—"

"Look, I really have to get ready for my date." I interrupt him and his icy eyes glare at me. "But how about we finish up this chat later, yeah?" I practically run into my bathroom, tear my clothes off, and jump in the shower.

I don't mean to seem so self centered and stupid, but I haven't seen Wes in almost a week, and I'm getting desperate. Merlin knows I'll have loads of time later to be sufficiently lectured by Malfoy anyway.

I wand dry my hair, put on some beauty charms, and throw on my dress and heels. I spritz a little of perfume (made for me specifically by my Uncle George to smell like whatever the smeller wants me to smell like) and dash out of my bedroom.

I see Malfoy, already changed, standing in my little kitchenette, glancing around the bare cupboards. He seems to have already inspected the other rooms in my flat.

"Do you ever eat anything?" He asks snootily.

"I usually do take out." I reply. "I'm not much of a cook."

He shrugs his shoulders and I take the opportunity to look him over. He looks nice, his button up shirt tucked in but the sleeves rolled up, showing his forearms. I have a small weakness for that style. Seriously. It is uber sexy and any guy can pull it off.

"Ready to go?" I ask him hurriedly.

"Sure."

"Okay good, we just have to wait for—"

I'm cut off by the buzzing of my doorbell.

I quickly rush to the door and there stands Wes. I drink in the sight of him standing in front of me, flowers in his hand and smile slightly.

"Hey Wes," I smile as my eyes rake over him.

He looks fantastic. His dark hair is combed (for once) and he's clothes are neat. He gives me a full smile, showing all of his straight white teeth. "Hello, love." He pecks me on the cheek.

I move aside to let him in and there's an awkward moment when he sees Malfoy standing in my living room.

"You must be the bodyguard." Wes acknowledges him.

"Scorpius Malfoy." Malfoy introduces himself professionally, holding out his right hand to shake.

"Wes Hopkins." My boyfriend holds out his hand and the two shake.

I can practically see feel the tension in the handshake. They're both obviously gripping as hard as they can at the other's hand, their knuckles are turning white.

"Well, now that you two have officially met, why don't we get going?" I suggest, trying to lighten the mood.

"Great. Rose, I made reservations for us at that one place we like." Wes smiles at me.

I smile back, but I don't really have any idea what he's talking about. We've been on many dates throughout our three month relationship and I can't seem to remember which one he's talking about when he's being so vague.

"Sounds fantastic!" I smile. "let me just go put these in a vase quickly." I walk out of the room quickly and feel the stares of the two awkward men on my back the entire time. Might as well leave them to get acquainted.

I take a little more time than needed arranging the flowers, and when I return to my bodyguard and boyfriend there is a strange, silent tension.

"Ready to go?" I ask brightly and make a move to get my coat off the table.

Both men go for it at once, but Malfoy steps back, allowing Wes to grab it and drape it over my shoulders. He plants a quick kiss on my cheek and we're out the door. We've apparated to the quaint little restaurant that we had our first date at and I swoon inside. He remembers! The little fine dining restaurant was beautifully lit up, completely by candlelight and the little stone room we were situated in had beautiful vines streaming throughout the restaurant, giving it an outdoorsy yet romantic kind of feel.

We laugh our way through dinner as I tell Wes my accomplishments at work and he tells me this ridiculous story of a man he was trying to help who ended up being a real pain in the you-know-what so he hexed him.

"You did _not _do that!" I exclaim through my peals of laughter, flicking my hair behind me. "That is just too funny!"

Wes laughs uproariously at my reaction. "Well, the guy had it coming to him! He was being a real pain in the arse and I just had to tell him…my boss wasn't too happy though." He shakes his head, sobering up.

I reach across the table and take his hand, smiling. "Well, I thought it was brilliant."

Wes blushes and squeezes my hand, glancing at me over the candlelit table.

"Well I think you're brilliant." He says, kissing my hand and smiling attractively at me.

"I think you're pretty brilliant too." I giggle.

I look deep into his dark eyes, loving how his attention is only for me in this entire restaurant filled with other beautiful women. He makes me feel beautiful.

We order a chocolate cake for dessert and share it, and he even feeds me a bite. I feel like I'm in some kind of alternate universe, where your boyfriend just does everything perfectly.

I glance around the restaurant and see many girls jealously looking in our direction, I continue my quick glance about and see Malfoy standing close enough to rush over if something were to go wrong, but far enough away that people dining in the restaurant aren't suspicious of his presence. I realized there was a reason he changed clothing, he blends right in. I think that' something they teach you to do when you become an auror, but I'm still impressed.

Wes pays the bill and we stand up, ready to leave.

I put my coat on and we exit the restaurant. We stand outside for a second and Wes looks around, trying to see if anyone is with us. When he notices we are sufficiently alone, he cups his hands around my face and kisses me.

I moan lightly, melting into him and he softly presses his lips against mine repeatedly.

"_Ahem_," a voice behind us clears his throat and I pull away to see Malfoy standing there. "Sorry to interrupt, but it's getting late. And your father," he looked directly at me, "doesn't want you out of your apartment after midnight."

Seriously? Is this some kind of sick joke?

"What, I have a curfew now?" I ask, irritated.

Malfoy just doesn't answer me, looking at me as if the answer should be obvious. Of course. There's a threat on my life. It would only be logical that I should have a curfew.

"I feel like I'm in school again," I mutter and Wes smiles at me.

"I'll see if I can sneak you out sometime." He whispers jokingly in my ear.

"That wouldn't be a good idea, Hopkins." Malfoy intervenes. "I'm an auror, there's no knowing how I might react if something strange happened late at night. I wouldn't want to hex your balls off."

Wes straightens his shoulders immediately. "Only kidding, Malfoy." He rolls his eyes.

"Well, I'll see you Rose." He kisses my cheek again and then smiles at me. "I would offer to walk you home, but something tells me Malfoy's already got that covered." He squeezes my hand and then apparates away.

I turn to glare at Malfoy. "Thanks a hell of a lot." I say sarcastically.

He smiles mischievously at me. "Come on, Rose. Let's go home." He grabs my hand and spins, apparating us back to my flat.

Leave it to Malfoy to ruin my date and make it sound like we're a couple, going home together.


	4. Chapter 4

I groaned as I rolled out of bed. It was still dark outside, for Merlin's sake. No one should be awake before the sun, it's not natural. Note to self: don't make dates on nights where you have to work the next day. Even if they're special anniversary dates. They can wait until the weekend.

I throw on my robe and stumble out into the kitchen, nearly banging into the kitchen table on the way. My eyes are still fuzzy for sleep as I gracefully enter the kitchen and then run into a strong, sturdy mass.

"Move Malfoy," I growl.

I had momentarily forgotten he currently lived for me. And those few moments were pure bliss.

"You're lovely in the morning, you know that?" He smirks at me sarcastically.

He looks fully awake and already showered. His hair is still damp, but his cloak is on, and he's ready for the day. Well except for…

"Do you have any bloody food?" He asks, opening every single door to every single cupboard in the kitchen.

"No."

"Don't you eat breakfast?"

"I drink tea."

"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day!" He frowns at me.

I roll my eyes as I begin to prepare the kettle. "Then make your own goddamn breakfast."

"You don't have any food."

"Then buy your own goddamned food."

Someone should have warned the poor guy not to speak to me in the mornings. I know I'm not being kind, but I can't really bring myself to care due to my state of tiredness. Eventually I'll apologize for my behaviour, all he wants is food, which isn't a terribly unreasonable request.

"I will. And then I'll force-feed you breakfast."

"Your food, do whatever the hell you want with it."

"Anyone ever tell you that you swear like an old man?" He asks, glaring at me.

"Blame my father."

"You seem to do that enough already."

"I have all the reason to." I reach in the cabinet above the stove and pull down my mug and slam it down on the counter with a bang.

I return to my room, while waiting for the water to heat up, and wash my face, attempting to clear my head. Now that I'm actually sharing a flat with someone else again, I'm going to have to compromise. At least be a little more willing. Maybe I'll give him a cupboard to keep breakfast food.

I put on my cloak and hear the whistling of the kettle.

Scorpius is already at the kettle by the time I get there.

"Don't touch that!" I practically scream at him, throwing myself in his direction.

"Rose, relax. I know how you like your tea made and the way you drink it. I used to live with you at school, and I spent enough summers with your family to pick up on it." He says calmly, beginning to arrange my tea just the way I like it.

I look at him warily, but decide to trust him. If I'm going to trust him with my life I might as well trust him to make my tea, the worst thing that could happen is I would have to make it again.

He makes the tea and adds a spoon of milk and just a pinch of sugar, just the way I like it and then sets it down gently in front of me. I take a cautionary sip, then another gulp. I set down the tea and smile at him.

"Sorry for earlier. I'm not really a morning person."

He shrugs easily, pouring himself some tea and sitting down across from me.

We sit in companionable silence for a few moments, letting the stillness of the morning calm us. Well, me I guess, I'm the one who really needs the calming.

"Come on, we'll get you food." I stand up and return to my room, gathering my briefcase and putting on my outdoor cloak. "There's this place I like to go," I call to him as I exit my room, closing the door behind me.

I hold out my hand and he grasps it before I spin and force us into time and space. We land with a crack outside of a small café named Stumpy's and Scorpius opens the door for me to go in. The bell on the door jingles as we open it and we catch the attention of the tired man behind the counter. Stumpy's is a relatively well kept secret amongst my family and a few others. He usually gets most of his business at night, which leaves his mornings free. I love going here to get brunch and relax, but I'm rarely ever here this early.

"Hello, Stump." I smile and wave.

The stout man behind the corner grins at me.

"Rose Weasley! I don't think you've been in here this early since you were five!" He laughs boisterously.

I roll my eyes. "This man here needs food, I had no choice. You've always told me that men should be kept well fed!"

Stumpy raises his silvery eyebrows, smiling teasingly at me, "And this man is….?"

"Scorpius is a family friend; he's staying with me until he can find a place to rent. You know what a pain that is." I lie easily, rolling my eyes for emphasis. I wasn't exactly supposed to advertise the fact that I had a bodyguard, after all.

Stumpy studies him for a moment, before nodding his approval. "Right, son, what can I get you?"

We get Scorpius his greatly needed nutrients and wave goodbye to Stumpy, promising him that we'd be in later, knowing Scorpius we'd probably be in every morning, then we apparate to the front of the Ministry.

We reach the office and sit down at our desks, Scorpius muttering something about the smallness of his desk again as I ignore him. I had just sat down when the high heel clicks alerted me that my friend Tori was approaching. I always knew when she was coming to visit me from the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes because I could hear the click clacking of her ridiculously high heels.

"Incoming," I whisper to Scorpius who looks at me, confused, before the smell of her flowery perfume wafts into the room.

"Rose Weasley!"

"Good Morning Tori," I smile wanly at her.

She barely glances at Scorpius as she barrels into the room.

"Wes was talking to me and-"

"Really?" I interrupted her, shocked. She and Wes hadn't really gotten along that well. Tori was, well, a bit too obnoxious for Wes and he was too "wimpy" for her.

"Okay, so I was eavesdropping on him." She confesses and I hear Scorpius scoff in the corner. "And he was telling his friend, Jeffrey, maybe? Sure, let's go with Jeffrey. Anyway he was telling 'Jeffrey' that he had good date with you last night!" She smiles brilliantly at me, as if this is supposed to make my whole morning.

"That's great, Tor." I smile tightly at her, blushing slightly as I return to setting up my work. I have to write the final draft of one of my propositions for the new universal dialogue between witches and wizards conference. Nott wants it by the Monday and I really don't want to work on it over the weekend.

"So….did you, _you know_?" Tori asks me.

"I don't think that's appropriate to answer in a work environment." I reply sternly, eyeing Scorpius.

Tori seems to finally realise that she's not the only one present in my room. Her blond head turns to look at Scorpius and I see her eye him appreciatively. Sure enough, she turns back to me and mouths "Yum!" and licks her lips before she saunters seductively over to his side of the room.

"Who are _you_?" she purrs.

Malfoy raises his eyebrows appreciatively as he leans her hands on his desk, giving him full view of her cleavage.

"Scorpius Malfoy." He smirks at her.

"I don't believe we've met," Tori smiles fully, flashing all of her pearly whites. "I'm Tori Westerly."

"Charmed," Malfoy says smoothly, as he takes her proffered hand and kisses it lightly.

Tori giggles and twirls her hair. "What are you doing in Rosie's office?"

I roll my eyes at their childishness. I was just starting to get used to Malfoy and now he's starts irritating me again.

Suddenly Masen storms into my office, banging his fist on the door as he enters. He once told me that since all the doors were open; banging it with his fist was the closest thing he got to flinging open a door in a rage.

"Your owl is stupid, Weasley. If I didn't know any better, I would think that you told everybody to send your letters to me, just to make me come over here and hand them to you!" Carlos seethes.

"You sound cheery, Carlos!" Tori smiles at him and immediately his demeanour changes.

"Just an early morning, Tori, you know how they are." He smiles easily at her.

I must seriously consider keeping Tori around more often, just because Carlos is a lot easier to be around when she's here.

I ignore them and open my mail. Junk. Coupon to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Junk. Mysterious grey envelope….I immediately tear open the grey envelope.

_Three days_.

That's it. That's all that's on there. I frown slightly. Three days until what? Three days makes it April 15, that date doesn't hold any significance to me.

I look up to see that Masen and Tori have left, probably together and Scorpius is at work fliling.

"Scorpius, look at this." I levitate the letter over to him and watch as he reads it.

"That date have any significance to you?" He asks, immediately going into auror mode.

"No, I was just thinking that. There isn't anything important about April 15th, well, at least to me. That's why I thought it was strange. What do you think it is?"

He shakes his head, inspecting the envelope. "There's something else in here."

"What?" I ask, reaching for the envelope.

And then he pulls out a small broach. It's a rose.

I freeze and look at him and he stares at me, studying my reaction.

"What do you think it means?" I ask, my voice shaking slightly.

"It means we're going to talk to your dad. Tell Nott, we're taking the day off as safety precautions. Your dad is the person we should be talking to." He says, fingering the broach.

I got to find my broach, thinking for the first time that maybe this situation is a lot more serious than I had originally thought.


	5. Chapter 5

_That bastard is going to pay._

_He is going to pay for taunting and torturing him. He is going to pay for the pain he caused and the time he had lost. He is going to pay in the worst way possible—only what would cause him so much pain that he would no longer wish to live? What would make him feel the kind of pain he had felt? _

_The wife, he thought at first. I'll get to him through the wife. But then, he had done his research. The wife was too difficult, she had, after all, survived the wrath of the Dark Lord himself. The son was safely protected behind the spells and incantations of Hogwarts, untouchable. The daughter, it must be then._

_A lucky strike, he thought, women are his specialty. There's nothing like the scent of a woman, the softness of her body as she molds into him, her shrieks at his touch, her response to him. Yes, women are his favourite._

_Some liked to kill with a wand. They are the lazy ones, he thinks. He liked to kill with his own bare hands. He liked to put his hands around their soft, pale necks and feel the blood pulse as he slowly drained the life from their bodies. He liked to feel their kicks of restraint, watch their eyes for the feeling of hopelessness they got when they finally realised they could no longer breathe, that there would be no chance for an escape._

_It is such a beautiful moment. That's when they looked the most beautiful, when they resign themselves to the fate in his hands. When they finally stop struggling and gasp for their last breath. When his feeling of power and domination was at its highest, that is his favourite moment._

_So, the daughter. She would be the one._

_It wouldn't be difficult. They probably wouldn't even see him coming. They hadn't caught him the other times—he was too stealthy, too clean to get caught. The only witnesses to his crimes were dead. He had been caught once, though, of course, a careless mistake made by a rookie, but he was smarter now._

_He wouldn't get caught for the more dangerous crimes he had committed. Petty theft had been the end of him just a year and a half ago and yet he had the power to escape. He got away, and he thrived in the world. _

_Maybe he would do a few more, just for practice. She should be his best yet, he should make no mistakes with her._

_Rose, what a pretty name for a pretty woman. His little flower. And white roses are the symbol of purity. Surely she would be pure with such a protective father. The thought made him twitch in excitement. Of course, she would be pure, untarnished. He felt a swelling of want in his abdomen. And she would be his. All his._

* * *

><p>I made my way into my office without dropping anything, something that was quite a miracle to begin with. My briefcase was overflowing with rolls of parchment, my tea cup was teetering dangerously in my hand, and the quill in my mouth was threatening to drop straight into my teacup.<p>

Monday mornings are always the worst. The relaxed feeling that I get from the weekend totally evaporates and the pile of parchment on my desk seems entirely too daunting.

"Weasley! Why is it that I currently do not have an intern?" Carlos Masen screamed at me, throwing the door open to my office.

There goes any hope for a peaceful Monday morning.

Carlos is very good at what he does (Communications for the Department International of Magic Cooperation) he speaks several languages fluently and can swear sufficiently in all of them, he seems to have a knack for charming all the woman too, and apparently he once made the South African Ambassador laugh so hard pumpkin juice came out of his nose. And he's also_ very_ attractive. Blond hair, green eyes, toned abs, the whole package. He just happens to know that.

"Probably because you fired the last one." I quipped, setting my briefcase down and ignoring the fact that Masen couldn't even wait for me to be settled before barging in and yelling at me for something that is totally out of my control.

"That's because that idiot had no idea what he was doing! Why do you give me all the idiot men who don't know what they're doing? I told you that I prefer girl interns!"

I sighed heavily and rub my temple at his loud screams. Carlos has yet to grasp the concept of speaking in low volumes.

"Well, the last girl intern you had filed a sexual harassment complaint and quit, so Nott told me to stick the males with you."

"Well that's…that's…." Carlos spluttered his face flushing as he tries to figure out just what his predicament is.

"Completely justified, Masen." My boss, Theodore Nott, walked up just in time to hear Carlos's complaints.

Nott is a very fair boss, for which I'm very grateful. I know that fair bosses are really hard to come by, but Nott seems to have a natural born kind of justice sense. No one ever even dares to cross him, not because we're scared of him but because we respect him and his opinions. He's just one of those people who screams 'voice of reason' and in all circumstances of dispute, we turn to him to lead us. There's no one else I would rather work under.

"But…sir!"

"No buts, Masen. We'll get you a new intern in due time. For now you'll have to fetch your own tea." Nott says in an end-of-discussion tone.

"Yes, sir." Carlos ducked his head, glaring at me for only Merlin knows why as he exits my office.

Finally. I took a sip of tea and tried to decompress from the stressful morning. I had only been in the office for half an hour and already I wished it was Sunday again so I could go back to my reading and peaceful Sunday morning.

"Oh and Weasley?" Nott said, catching my attention again. "Good job on the proposal for the International Peace Talks. I daresay it will catch the attention of some countries!" He smiled kindly at me.

"Thank you sir!" I practically beamed at him.

I worked really hard on that proposal. I'm thrilled. Perhaps I'll be able to finally start working on my own instead of editing everybody else's propositions and letters. That's what I do now, as undersecretary to the undersecretary (the official term is junior undersecretary) to the Head of the Department of International Magic Cooperation.

Nott left my office in the same way he came, quietly and I turned back to the multitude of letters on my desk, grabbing my pot of red ink and beginning to settle in for a day of editing. I love my job. It took me a really long time to get here. To begin with, I took a gap year, travelling around Europe and doing fun things and meeting interesting people.

Then I had bumbled around, sometimes helping my mum out, sometimes helping my dad out, sometimes working at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, and eventually landed myself as the secretary under the Marketing Director of the Department of International Magic Cooperation. It seemed to be a lucky thing—a coincidence of fate that I should already be so interested in foreign countries and then I found myself working for the Ministry with the possibility of having a job that would entail doing almost exactly what I did during my gap year.

And now at the ripe old age of twenty four and I can finally say that I have found my passion. It just took a lot longer than my sixteen year old self had thought.

Dad and Mum had been thrilled when I finally told them I found this job. I don't know what they thought was going to become of me but I don't think they had envisioned this.

I had just organised my desk and felt ready to take on the day when my door burst open again, much to my chagrin.

"Weasley, your boyfriend's stupid arse owl missed your desk again." Carlos said bitterly as he threw a bouquet of flowers on my desk.

The flowers are beautiful: orange and pink daisies, one of my favorite flowers. I lifted them to my nose and inhaled the beautiful smell. I saw the note from Wes and sighed lightly, he's a keeper, that one.

**Hello Love,**

**Happy three month anniversary!**

**I'll pick you up at your flat tonight at 7. Be ready and wear something the nice.**

**Love, **

**Wes**

I giggled and smelled the flowers again.

Wes, my boyfriend of three months, does these romantic gestures that make me feel like a princess or something just a deserving. He's got this knack for being romantic, something that my past boyfriends have all sadly lacked. None of them would have ever, ever, in a million years remembered our three month anniversary, let alone take me out to someplace nice for it. But this is just one of the reasons that I like Wes. He's kind and has a good memory like that. He makes me feel like I'm not the only one in the relationship.

My parents are a bit cautious though, because he's thirty, almost six years older than me. But trust me when I say that no other twenty four year old is looking to settle down. All the boys are just looking for a good time, and personally I'm glad that I've found someone who finally looks like husband material. Or, at least he could be.

I fingered the petals on the daises, admiring the bright colours as I contemplate for just a few minutes longer the difference between Wes and all the other boys. Despite my family's reservations I can't help but think that this could go long-term. Unless of course, something drastic were to happen that would change that, but nothing like that can even come to mind right now.

I pushed back from the desk and hurried over to my briefcase near the wastebasket and dug around in there for my planner to write down the date, but I couldn't find it anywhere. I started to panic and dragged the briefcase to my desk, emptying all of the contents out on the table, but still not finding it anywhere.

Had I left it at home?

I went through my morning routine and I was certain that I had put it in there…but perhaps I hadn't. Maybe it was somewhere else.

I promised myself that I would look again at home, but resign myself to writing a To Do List here, on a spare piece of parchment because writing things down always helps me remember them better.

**To Do**

**-Edit Joana's proposition for the new Universal Dialogue for Teen Witches and Wizards Conference**

**- Assign new intern to Masen because he fired the other one**

**-Make sure that we have butterballs for the Ecuadorian Prime Minister who is coming into town on Thursday**

**-Date with Wes tonight at 7.**

**-Look for planner**

I sighed and sat back down to my desk and settled in for a long day of editing.

* * *

><p><em>He watched her from a safe place, enjoying the look of panic on her face as she searched for the little black notebook he had in his hands. He felt the thrill of the chase fill him and the excitement rushed through his veins like alcohol through an alcoholics'.<em>

_Surely he would have to practice on others before it was her turn. She deserved only the best. With her beauty and her fire, she would present a challenge. But he like challenges, they made his heart beat faster in anticipation. _

_But for now he would just wait. He would watch her and learn about her and take his fill of her. _

_He would torture her like her father had tortured him._

_And her father would pay dearly, like he had paid every day that he was behind bars._

_And she would be his. All his._

* * *

><p><strong>AN: All right, so, this story has undergone some editing as anyone who has read this story before will soon see (I hope). Actually, it has totally changed completely. So here's hoping you all think that the change is for the better (though I certainly do!). Anyway, this story will be undergoing major editing and then continue to be published on a fairly regular basis within the next five months or so, hopefully being finished soon (hopefully by May of 2012, if not sooner than that!). **

**So, please let me know your thoughts. I'm very excited because this is a different style than I've written before and it's always great to hear feedback and constructive criticism.**

**Let me know what you think (please),**

**~wwccd  
><strong>


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Please note that this story is undergoing construction and being rewritten before I continue on with the story. The new first chapter is up and I would like you to read that because IT HAS CHANGED. It is under a completely new story, also entitled Guarded.**

**I have added the first chapter of the new version of the last chapter of this version for comparison and clarity's sake.  
><strong>

**You may also note that the Summary has changed and the rating has changed to M because _Italics Guy_ (as you will know him until his identity is revealed) is totally psycho and his thoughts are a bit disturbing. If the majority of you believe that he's not that bad and can be rated T, I will change the rating, but for now it will stay M.**

**I think that just about covers everything...let me know what you think of the rewrite!**

**~wwccd**


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